DR. KAPLAN: Exercises to keep you brain in balance

If you have ever been hit in the head, had a car accident, or had a slip and fall, it is possible you had a brain injury. Symptoms of a brain injury or a concussion include headaches, dizziness, brain fog, trouble with focus, memory problems, blurry vision, anxiety, mood swings, or difficulty with sleep. These symptoms may appear immediately, or they may appear days, months, or even years later.

Although many people can get hit in the head and not have symptoms, others cannot handle the impact. These people usually have some sort of underlying issue before the injury that prevents them from recovering properly.

The most common underlying issue that I see is dysautonomia, an imbalance of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. These people are in the “fight or flight” mode rather than the normal “rest and digest” state. They live in a fearful state, even in their sleep. They will be on edge, little things will become big deals in their lives, and anger management becomes difficult.

As the nervous system is overstimulated, eventually it may lead to adrenal fatigue. As the brain is already so tired and weak from being in the “fight or flight” mode it cannot handle a brain impact and symptoms may ensue.

The solution is to make the brain stronger. Just like you should brush your teeth to keep your teeth healthy and you should exercise to keep your heart and muscles strong, I also recommend doing neurological exercises to make your brain strong so it can handle any physical, chemical, or emotional stress without creating any symptoms.

In neuroplasticity we exercise the brain by creating more connections between cells. As neuroscience continues to add contributions to medical innovations and treatment options, we use this research to help people improve their brain function and quality of life.

To rewire the brain, a person must increase oxygen that is delivered to the brain, perform new activities that they have never done before, challenge the brain, supply the brain with lots of water and feed the brain healthy and colorful food.

One example of a challenging brain exercise you can practice at home is to draw clockwise circles in the air using your left leg; and at the same time use your left arm to draw the number 6 in the air. Because one limb is going counterclockwise and the other is going clockwise, it becomes very difficult to perform. Try this every day and you will get the hang of it.

This is just one example of thousands of exercises that you can perform to keep your brain strong and healthy as you get older and wiser. You can purchase my book “Boost Your Brain Power: a guide to improving your memory and focus” on Amazon if you are interested in learning about more exercises to improve memory and focus.

Each traumatic brain injury requires a different type of treatment. Our office differs from most because our programs are based on the specific lobe of the brain and the specific side of the brain that is most damaged. For example, we might want to stimulate one side of the brain that is weak and underactive, but we also might want to calm down the other side of the brain that is overactive.

If the brain injury has affected the front part of the brain, it is possible the patient may have trouble with concentration, may be easily dis- tracted, may have troubles with focus, may have trouble with organization, difficulty planning, decision making, abnormal social behavior, issues with language or speech, poor memory, confusion, brain fog, depression, anxiety, may have problems with punctuality, losing things easily, or forgetting conversations and details.

There are many easy ways to stimulate the front of the brain. For example little finger movements activate this front part. Smell is a sense that goes directly to this frontal lobe of the brain. Quick eye movements activate the frontal lobe.

One last common part of the nervous system affected in concussion is the vagus nerve. It may be due to its location near the top of the neck and the shearing forces that it has to handle during a concussion, but the vagus nerve is often damaged. As the nerve is not functioning properly, it may be appropriate to try to strengthen it by performing exercises that have already been proven to activate the vagus nerve.

Gargling intensely, performing the gag reflex, swallowing, singing, laughing, and screaming can create an increase in input to this weak area and create new stronger pathways that help the body function better. A dysfunctional vagus nerve can cause problems with breathing, diabetes, heart disease, digestion, urination, sexual function, thyroid function, liver function, and kidney function, so it is vital to make sure it is functioning at optimal levels.

The brain is complicated and each brain injury needs the proper attention. One of the best neurology tools we have in our office is a qEEG with neurofeedback, which measures brain waves. You wear what looks like a swim cap. Electrodes measure areas of the brain and tell you what isnʼt functioning well. It is noninvasive, there is no radiation, no pain, and takes about 30 minutes to perform. It is normally $500, but we are giving a gift to our readers: the qEEG brain mapping with a review and consultation for $21. Call (201) 261-2150 or email info@kaplanbrainandbody.com to reserve your spot.

Besides stimulating the weak areas of the brain and calming the overactive parts of the brain, create good brain habits to improve your quality of life. These habits include eating healthy, exercising daily, getting a good nightʼs sleep, drinking the proper amount of water, reducing stress and anxiety, having fun, creating joy, meditating, being in nature, and getting sunlight.

I will review many of these habits on my weekly radio show “Boost Your Brainpower with Dr. Eric “ on AM 970 Saturdays from 8 to 9 a.m. and AM 710 Saturdays from 2 to 3 p.m.

If you are interested in informational videos about how to improve your brain function, please subscribe to my YouTube Channel “Kaplan Brain and Body,” so you will start to function better, feel better, and live better. Lastly, I will be running a live Boost Your Brain Power Seminar Series that begins March 22, 2023 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in River Edge. This first seminar is about the holistic and natural ways to reverse, as well as prevent, insomnia and chronic fatigue. Each seminar, which covers different topics such as mastering nutrition, natural reducing inflammation, learning functional brain exercises, and the Boost Your Brain Power Bootcamp, is $100, but if you call or text (646) 2216738 before March 22, you can go to all the live events, or participate on Zoom, or you can even get all the recordings, for a total of $49 (only $10 a module). Itʼs a no brainer! Hope to see you there.